1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a shuttle system for manufacturing vehicle headliners which includes clamps for separately clamping the cover material from the substrate for improved processing.
2. Background Art
A vehicle headliner typically includes a multi-layer substrate which is covered by a cover material which becomes the xe2x80x9cshow surfacexe2x80x9d in the vehicle (i.e., the cover material faces the vehicle interior). Generally, the various substrate materials and cover material are fed from rolls into a conveyor system. The various layers of substrate material are overlayed on each other, and a cover material is positioned thereon. The assembly is then cut to a desired length and transported into a mold. Once the assembly is placed into the mold, the mold is closed and heat is applied to thermoform the various layers together and form the assembly to a desired headliner shape.
Generally, the substrate and cover materials are held together in a taut (tensioned) condition as the mold closes. This is necessary to prevent the formation of wrinkles in the cover material. However, maintaining tension in the substrate may limit moldability of the substrate. Continuous tension in the substrate may result in breaking or xe2x80x9cnecking downxe2x80x9d (thinning) of the substrate in contoured areas of the mold during the molding process.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide an improved method and apparatus for thermoforming a headliner in a manner which addresses these problems.
The present invention improves upon the above-described prior art method and apparatus for manufacturing headliners by providing a dual clamping shuttle which clamps a cover material separately from a substrate for shuttling the materials into a mold and releases tension in the substrate prior to releasing tension in the cover material. In this manner, the cover material may remain clamped and in tension to prevent wrinkles while the substrate materials are released prior to mold closure to increase moldability and prevent breaking and necking down of the substrate material.
More specifically, the present invention provides a method of forming a headliner for a vehicle including the steps of:
(a) overlaying a cover material onto a multi-layer substrate;
(b) at least partially separating the cover material from the substrate during the overlaying step;
(c) clamping the cover material;
(d) clamping the substrate separately from the cover material;
(e) transporting the overlayed cover material and substrate into a mold;
(f) unclamping the substrate while the cover material remains clamped; and
(g) molding the cover material and substrate together to form the headliner.
Preferably, the cover material is clamped using pivoting jaw clamps, and the substrate is clamped with a plurality of discreet clamping members, such as pneumatically actuated pin members.
Preferably, a separator is provided to separate at least an edge of the cover material from the substrate to facilitate separate clamping of the cover material from the substrate. Also, preferably, the separator includes a movable portion to facilitate cutting of the cover material and substrate.
Another aspect of the invention provides a shuttle assembly for transporting the cover material and substrate into a mold to form a headliner. The shuttle assembly includes at least one movable rail. A first clamping apparatus is operatively connected to the rail for clamping the cover material, and a second clamping apparatus is operatively connected to the rail for clamping the substrate. The first clamping apparatus is unclampable separately from the second clamping apparatus to facilitate unclamping of the substrate prior to unclamping of the cover material when the cover material and substrate are positioned in the mold to minimize stretching of the substrate and to prevent formation of wrinkles in the cover material.
Accordingly, an object of the invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for manufacturing a headliner which includes a movable shuttle which clamps the substrate separately from the cover material.
Another object of the invention is to provide a method of molding a headliner in which a cover material and substrate are clamped and transported into a mold, and the substrate is unclamped prior to unclamping of the cover material to prevent stretching of the substrate and to prevent wrinkling of the cover material.
The above objects and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention are readily apparent from the following detailed description of the best mode for carrying out the invention when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.